To travel you do not have to wait for the time you go on vacation. Even on a workweek, there is a time for a trip. To diversify your weekends and to get new impressions and emotions you can make a fantastic trip embracing our programme "short breaks".

Take your friends or family, choose up to three cities you want to visit and make a fabulous journey. In this weekend tour, you can stay for a one or two nights in the places you have chosen. You can be on excursions exploring and admiring the cities during the whole day and enjoy breathtaking views of the places recollecting bright moments of your trip at night. From dawn till night you will be able to see how the cities and everything around you change. Morning day will present the architecture and the landscape in sunlight glory while night will show transformed buildings and streets sinking in illumination.

What is the first thing that comes to mind when it comes to souvenirs from Russia? Of course, it is matryoshka, balalaika, vodka and caviar. Oh, and a hat with ear flaps as well! However, the ear flap hat is now in vogue, and has ceased to be such a rarity, vodka can be bought almost anywhere in the world.

Numerous souvenir shops are vying to sell magnets, mugs and T-shirts with slogans and thematic images (flag and coat of arms of Russia, funny sayings, bears, portraits of politicians and well-known writers), sailor's striped vests, as well as handicrafts. Khokhloma, Gzhel, enamel, birch amulets and Vologda lacework… the assortment is huge! But when you make purchases, don’t lower your guard.
Some unscrupulous sellers may try to sell you cheaper and substandard imitations. Of course, most of the shops have certificates for their goods and buy them directly from factories and workshops.
To help you not to get lost in all this colorful variety and tell how and where it is better to buy particular products, we have prepared separate articles for you on Russian folk crafts.

It makes sense to look for more valuable and rare souvenirs in antique shops.
Old coins, porcelain figurines of the Soviet era, icons, clocks, badges, decorations - one does not know where to look first!
But even here there are potential pitfalls. Apart from the fact that the seller may seriously inflate the price of what you want to buy, arguing that it is older or more valuable than it really is, there may be problems taking it out of the country.

As of today, it is prohibited to take any items of cultural value (books, figurines, icons, pictures, etc.), created prior to January 1, 1964 out of the country.

Important note: items of cultural value do not include cultural goods of serial and mass production, or modern souvenirs.

However, sometimes even an item of mass production manufactured over fifty years ago may attract the close attention of the customs service. If you want to protect yourself from unforeseen delays and undesired proceedings (the item is likely to stay with you, which, alas, cannot be said of your nerve cells), you can send the purchase to your own address by mail, after packing it carefully to avoid damage. Make sure that the package has a warning sign if the item is fragile.

Are you a little confused with all this information? Our team members are always ready to help you navigate all the rules, addresses, products and prices!

You will definitely find something to your liking and within your budget with all the variety of great Russian souvenirs!

Filimonovo toy

Filimonovo toy – One of the oldest surviving handicrafts, Filimonovo toys are more than seven hundred years old. The artisanry emerged in the area due to rich deposits of a special clay named Sinika. It was used not only to make toys, but also for crockery.

Pennywhistle toys have remained the main product of the Filimonovo factory through today.

Sinika is blue clay with some unusual properties. It is very oily, which complicates the process of modeling – it tends to crack while drying and the cracks have to be repeatedly smoothed, which gives the figurines that very distinctive, disproportionately refined form. During the tempering the clay changes its color to bright white.

The main motifs of Filimonovo toys are animals and humans. Animal figurines are graceful and elongated. You can tell them apart by the form of their horns and ears. Ladies with babies and gentlemen are far less graceful; they remind you of more primitive sculptures. Another very famous motif is the lovers, represented by two figures embracing one another.

Filimonovo toys are not primed! The painting is laid directly on the clay with acrylic paint of maroon, yellow, and green colors. Animals are characterized by a combination of stripes and single color elements. Pagan motifs are widely used.

The village of Filimonovo is located in the Odoevo district of the Tula Oblast. In the small town of Odoevo there is a Filimonovo Toy museum.